Site impacts nutrient translocation efficiency in intra- and interspecies miscanthus hybrids on marginal lands

Miscanthus, a C4 perennial rhizomatous grass, is capable of growing in varied climates and soil types in Europe, including on marginal lands. It can produce high yields with low nutrient inputs when harvested after complete senescence. Senescence induction and rate depend on complex genetic, environmental, and management interactions. To explore these interactions, we analysed four miscanthus hybrids (two novel seed-based hybrids, GRC 3 (M. sinensis × sinensis) and GRC 14 (M. sacchariflorus × sinensis); GRC 15, a novel M. sacchariflorus × sinensis clone; and GRC 9, a standard M. × giganteus clone) in Italy, Croatia, Germany and the UK. Over all trial locations and hybrids, the average aboveground biomass of the three-year-old stands in August 2020 was 15 t DM ha-1 with nutrient contents of 7.6 mg N g-1 and 14.6 mg K g-1. As expected, delaying the harvest until spring reduced overall yield and nutrient contents (12 t DM ha-1, 3.3 mg N g-1 and 5.5 mg K g-1). At lower latitudes, the late-ripening M. sacchariflorus × sinensis GRC 14 and GRC 15 combined high yields with low nutrient contents. At the most elevated latitude location (UK), the early-ripening M. sinensis × sinensis combined high biomass yields with low nutrient offtakes. The clonal M. × giganteus with intermediate flowering and senescence attained similar low nutrient contents by spring harvest at all four locations. Seasonal changes in yield and nutrient levels analysed in this study provide: 1) a first step towards recommending hybrids for specific locations and end uses in Europe; 2) crucial data for determination of harvest time and practical steps in the valorisation of biomass; and 3) key sustainability data for life cycle assessments. Identification of trade-offs resulting from genetic × environment × management interactions are critical for increasing sustainable biomass supply from miscanthus grown on marginal lands

Reconfiguring health workforce: a case-based comparative study explaining the increasingly diverse professional roles in Europe

Abstract Background Over the past decade the healthcare workforce has diversified in several directions with formalised roles for health care assistants, specialised roles for nurses and technicians, advanced roles for physician associates and nurse practitioners and new professions for new services, such as case managers. Hence the composition of health care teams has become increasingly diverse. The exact extent of this diversity is unknown across the different countries of Europe, as are the drivers of this change. The research questions guiding this study were: What extended professional roles are emerging on health care teams? How are extended professional roles created? What main drivers explain the observed differences, if any, in extended roles in and between countries? Methods We performed a case-based comparison of the extended roles in care pathways for breast cancer, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. We conducted 16 case studies in eight European countries, including in total 160 interviews with physicians, nurses and other health care professionals in new roles and 600+ hours of observation in health care clinics. Results The results show a relatively diverse composition of roles in the three care pathways. We identified specialised roles for physicians, extended roles for nurses and technicians, and independent roles for advanced nurse practitioners and physician associates. The development of extended roles depends upon the willingness of physicians to delegate tasks, developments in medical technology and service (re)design. Academic training and setting a formal scope of practice for new roles have less impact upon the development of new roles. While specialised roles focus particularly on a well-specified technical or clinical domain, the generic roles concentrate on organising and integrating care and cure. Conclusion There are considerable differences in the number and kind of extended roles between both countries and care pathways. The main drivers for new roles reside in the technological development of medical treatment and the need for more generic competencies. Extended roles develop in two directions: 1) specialised roles and 2) generic roles

Reconfiguring health workforce: a case-based comparative study explaining the increasingly diverse professional roles in Europe

Abstract Background Over the past decade the healthcare workforce has diversified in several directions with formalised roles for health care assistants, specialised roles for nurses and technicians, advanced roles for physician associates and nurse practitioners and new professions for new services, such as case managers. Hence the composition of health care teams has become increasingly diverse. The exact extent of this diversity is unknown across the different countries of Europe, as are the drivers of this change. The research questions guiding this study were: What extended professional roles are emerging on health care teams? How are extended professional roles created? What main drivers explain the observed differences, if any, in extended roles in and between countries? Methods We performed a case-based comparison of the extended roles in care pathways for breast cancer, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. We conducted 16 case studies in eight European countries, including in total 160 interviews with physicians, nurses and other health care professionals in new roles and 600+ hours of observation in health care clinics. Results The results show a relatively diverse composition of roles in the three care pathways. We identified specialised roles for physicians, extended roles for nurses and technicians, and independent roles for advanced nurse practitioners and physician associates. The development of extended roles depends upon the willingness of physicians to delegate tasks, developments in medical technology and service (re)design. Academic training and setting a formal scope of practice for new roles have less impact upon the development of new roles. While specialised roles focus particularly on a well-specified technical or clinical domain, the generic roles concentrate on organising and integrating care and cure. Conclusion There are considerable differences in the number and kind of extended roles between both countries and care pathways. The main drivers for new roles reside in the technological development of medical treatment and the need for more generic competencies. Extended roles develop in two directions: 1) specialised roles and 2) generic roles

Strategies of an Italian Spa Company at the Dawn of Mass Tourism. The Recovery of S.A. Terme e Grandi Alberghi di Sirmione in the Second Postwar Period

In the aftermath of WWII, the Italian tourism sector, as the rest of the national economy, had to undertake a complex and crucial phase of reconstruction. This essay investigates the second postwar period focusing on the case study of S.A. Terme e Grandi Alberghi di Sirmione. Using documentary material from different archives, the aim is to reconstruct the strategies adopted by the spa company to revive its tourism activities, contextualizing them in the developments of the Garda area. In a crucial phase, when western tourism was acquiring a mass dimension, the new shareholders started afresh from the reconstruction of the accommodation facilities following logics of diversification and innovation

Data for yield performance of fourteen novel inter- and intra-species Miscanthus hybrids across Europe

Moisture content was calculated via a subsample from the fresh weight per plant. From this fresh weight and moisture content the dry weight per quadrat was calculated then timed up to Mg DM ha⁻¹

Additional file 1: of Whole mitochondrial genomes unveil the impact of domestication on goat matrilineal variability

Table S1. Sources for the 758 goat control-region sequences. Table S2. Control-region haplotypes and haplogroup classification of the 758 mtDNA sequences from Capra aegagrus (n = 19) and Capra hircus (n = 739). Table S3. Partial coding-region haplotypes and haplogroup classification of two bezoar mtDNAs. Table S4. Source and haplogroup affiliation of the goat complete mtDNA sequences. Figure S1. Nucleotide diversity and total number of substitutions along the entire mtDNA. Figure S2. A putative most parsimonious tree of 84 complete mtDNA sequences from goats. (XLSX 1268 kb

Additional file 2: of Whole mitochondrial genomes unveil the impact of domestication on goat matrilineal variability

Table S5. Goat haplogroup frequencies based on modern and ancient control-region mtDNA data from this study and downloaded from GenBanka. Table S6. Diagnostic mutational motifs of goat mtDNA haplogroups and sub-haplogroups. Table S7. A comparison of the phylogeographic features of goat, taurine and horse mtDNA haplogroups identified by analyzing domestic breeds from Eurasia. Table S8. Oligonucleotides used to amplify and to sequence (Sanger method) the goat mitochondrial genome. (PDF 652Â kb

Whole mitochondrial genomes unveil the impact of domestication on goat matrilineal variability

Abstract Background The current extensive use of the domestic goat (Capra hircus) is the result of its medium size and high adaptability as multiple breeds. The extent to which its genetic variability was influenced by early domestication practices is largely unknown. A common standard by which to analyze maternally-inherited variability of livestock species is through complete sequencing of the entire mitogenome (mitochondrial DNA, mtDNA). Results We present the first extensive survey of goat mitogenomic variability based on 84 complete sequences selected from an initial collection of 758 samples that represent 60 different breeds of C. hircus, as well as its wild sister species, bezoar (Capra aegagrus) from Iran. Our phylogenetic analyses dated the most recent common ancestor of C. hircus to ~460,000 years (ka) ago and identified five distinctive domestic haplogroups (A, B1, C1a, D1 and G). More than 90 % of goats examined were in haplogroup A. These domestic lineages are predominantly nested within C. aegagrus branches, diverged concomitantly at the interface between the Epipaleolithic and early Neolithic periods, and underwent a dramatic expansion starting from ~12–10 ka ago. Conclusions Domestic goat mitogenomes descended from a small number of founding haplotypes that underwent domestication after surviving the last glacial maximum in the Near Eastern refuges. All modern haplotypes A probably descended from a single (or at most a few closely related) female C. aegagrus. Zooarchaelogical data indicate that domestication first occurred in Southeastern Anatolia. Goats accompanying the first Neolithic migration waves into the Mediterranean were already characterized by two ancestral A and C variants. The ancient separation of the C branch (~130 ka ago) suggests a genetically distinct population that could have been involved in a second event of domestication. The novel diagnostic mutational motifs defined here, which distinguish wild and domestic haplogroups, could be used to understand phylogenetic relationships among modern breeds and ancient remains and to evaluate whether selection differentially affected mitochondrial genome variants during the development of economically important breeds